Pandemonium
by Aukum
Summary: Dante struggles to accept Vergil's death and throws himself into his work to avoid thinking about it. He receives multiple calls for help to defeat the same devil and leaves to investigate the claims in Japan. \\ mostly abandoned WIP
1. Prologue: Dante's Thoughts

A/N: crossover with the manga Devil&Devil. Translations can be found with a quick google search... although I will eventually make an info page on my site.

**Pandemonium**  
Prologue - Dante's thoughts

As children, Dante and Vergil's mother made sure that her boys had the best education possible. She wanted to know that if they were ever banished from school, they would never fall behind the kids who would accuse them of being stupid in addition to being monsters. It was already difficult for them as it was. She knew her boys suffered because of their father's demon blood but she could do nothing about it. Instead, she was going to try her hardest to make sure her boys became good and intelligent men... there was no need to wish they grew up strong since their heritage made strength a given. She thought that there was no reason why they couldn't be good people even though they were demons, just like their father was.  
  
But then his family was attacked and Dante was forced to continue alone. It was then he realized that some things his mother taught him just wouldn't work in the world that the son of Sparda was forced to reside in. Politeness, manners, courtesy... he threw aside the so-called rules of human interaction drilled into him by his mother and turned to only rule that counted; the strong live and the weak die. Niceties were only fit for the ignorant and the ignorant refused to recognize that the real world was soaked in blood and vengeance.   
  
Dante was not ignorant.   
  
Dante was a Sparda and a damn good Demon Hunter, the best around after his old man bit the dust. And to be a good demon hunter, he had to muster every advantage over his opponent he could, be it through insults, dirty tricks and plain old knowledge. It'd just be stupid make a career of hunting monsters that were stronger and meaner than a normal human could ever be, even more so if he knew nothing about them. That's why he needed his own unfair advantage. Dante couldn't always use his built-in advantage, in fact he was ignorant of its real power until the job on Mallet Island, so he needed to manufacture a different kind of advantage.   
  
It's much easier to kill a demon you know about.  
  
That's why Dante kept studying even though he had more than enough strength to kill the odd demon that he wasn't familiar with. Knowledge saved him from a more than a few close calls. It would be too dangerous to rely on information from just one source but Dante doubted that the demons would be willing to give books detailing their weaknesses to a someone that made a living by killing them. What they didn't need was a more efficient hunter. He had no choice but to rely on human records.   
  
He discovered early in his studies that languages were remarkably poor when they needed to describe something outside their country of origin, which was only to be expected. Things that they encountered often and felt were of great importance to them were given the most words to articulate their thoughts while things they didn't know or care about, weren't. That's why Dante made it a point to learn as many languages as he could. It was bad enough that he had to rely on second hand sources that were likely quite biased in their reports without worrying about the translation. He wanted to eliminate as many dangerous factors as possible, which meant that he didn't want to worry about a misinterpretation that prove to be a fatal mistake. One such mistake made it painfully clear to the demon hunter that it was in his best interest to use the most direct sources.  
  
Dante was always better at studying than his brother was, that's probably why Nelo Angelo couldn't actually kill him. He just knew his brother better --although Dante didn't actually recognize Nelo Angelo as Vergil until it was too late-- something inside him must have recognized his brother's fighting style and found the inherent weakness. Dante prepared for every eventually, that's why he didn't falter in the fight when Nelo Angelo did.   
  
That's why he was able to kill Nelo Angelo.   
  
That's why Vergil died.  



	2. Prologue: Trish's Thoughts

**Pandemonium**  
Prologue - Trish's Thoughts 

When they returned form the battle with Mundus, Dante wordlessly accepted Trish's offer to set up the new Devil Never Cries office. She didn't think it was a good idea to resume work immediately but she did as he asked. If he thought he was tough enough to work through it, then far be it for her to contradict him. It isn't long until the threat of the Son of Sparda was forgotten and business picked up once again. For a while, everything is as it should be. Trish was content with fighting by Dante's side against the forces she was once allied with and he never objected to her presence. 

But then Trish began to notice that Dante began to change after his return to the normal world, it was as if nothing was interesting enough for him. He was always restless whenever there was a lull in jobs and distant on the battle field. His attention was always focused on something else; neither the demon before him nor the partner beside him could keep his attention. She never knew what he was thinking. She could put up with his attitude if staying meant that he would trust her enough to explain himself. 

Then there was that call. She couldn't guess what Dante talked about on the phone for so long since it was in a language whose meaning she could only guess at. After that, Dante issued and ultimatum that he alone answer the phone from that day forth. If he changed his mind, he'd tell her. Other than that, she was not to touch the phone even if he was laying in a bloody heap on the ground and in absolutely no shape to answer it himself. It was an odd request, but she brushed it off as another one of his quirks and commented that she wouldn't want to speak with any of the people he knew. 

Then there were the other calls, also in that same language.

It took a while but she was able to figure out that calls had to be from a foreigner, but a human foreigner. She would have been able to understand if they spoke in the Demonic language. Dante was speaking what sounded like a far-Eastern language with a fluency that astounded Trish. She didn't know who it could be and how they got the Devil Never Cries number but the calls seemed to awaken some of the old fire in Dante's eyes. For a while, she allowed herself the hope that things would return to the way they were before, when they returned from Mallet Island. 

She didn't know he was planning a trip until the morning she found his bags by the door and Alasdair on his back. Trish tried to ask why he was leaving but he only said that he needed to go and that she shouldn't waste her time prying. He needed to do it by himself, alone, and her help was not wanted or needed.

If that was the way he wanted it to be, she wouldn't wait for his return. 

Maybe it was something he need to do, maybe it was out of curiosity, or maybe he was just trying to get away from her. She didn't know, and that was the problem. She never knew what he was thinking or why he acted the way he did. The only thing Trish did know was Dante could take care of himself. If he needed her back, he would have to look for her.


End file.
